CIEL group sees PAT amounting to Rs 2.1bn for year ended June 2015

Mauritius-based conglomerate CIEL notched a marked improvement for the year end June 2015 over last year with group reporting a net profit after tax of Rs 2.1bn and profit attributable to owners of the parent totaled Rs 1.1bn

CIEL group posted revenue of Rs 16.5 bn for the year ended June 2015, and profit for the period amounted to Rs 2.1 bn.

There was non-recurrent items at the group level of Rs 488.7 m which related to gain on remeasurement of equity shareholding in The Medical & Surgical Centre Ltd and Anahita Hotel Ltd; profit on sale of properties at Ferney Ltd; and restructuring, branding and transaction costs associated with Sun.

Cluster highlights show that the textile operations posted improved results over last year, mainly driven by its Asian operations with turnover was in excess of Rs 10bn (2014 – Rs 9.6bn). The performance of the knitwear cluster has suffered from difficult market conditions but management is pro-actively looking for remedial actions.

The impact has been mitigated by the good and improved performance of the woven and Knits clusters. However, market conditions in Europe and South Africa remain challenging with exchange rate volatility on these markets is a concern.

As for internationalisation of operations and expansion in Asia remains the major strategic focus of the Group.

The financial services cluster has reported strong results for the year with banking operations, both Bank One and BNI Madagascar have performed well and better than last year.

MITCO, the fiduciary operations, managed to increase its revenue and net results despite tough competition in the sector and uncertainty surrounding the double tax agreement treaty with India. The partnership with Amethis aims at creating synergies between the two groups which should lead to new investment opportunities.

The healthcare segment, the Medical & Surgical Centre Limited (MSCL), the operator of Fortis Clinique Darné, posted improved performance over last year. Both turnover and net profit after tax are on the rise. Turnover increased by 11% to reach Rs 670m and a PAT of Rs 60m (2014 – Rs 53m) for the 12 months ended 30 June 2015.

As part of its expansion strategy, CIEL Healthcare Ltd (“CHL”) acquired, in June 2015, 90.1% of International Medical Group Ltd, the leading provider of private healthcare services in Uganda. In the same line, CHL is also pursuing discussion with various financial partners, so as to consolidate its capital base for its future development plans.

In the hotels & resorts section, the major business process reorganisation initiated by Sun last year is now starting to bear fruits. The execution of the new strategy has enabled Sun to become profitable again.

For the 12 months ended 30 June 2015, Sun reported improved operational performance with a profit before tax and non-recurrent items of Rs 165m (2014 – loss of Rs 50m), despite the closure for renovation of Le Touessrok and the Four Seasons Resort Mauritius at Anahita in the last quarter. Le Touessrok will re-opened in November 2015 and will be rebranded as Shangri-La’s Le Touessrok Resort & Spa. Net finance costs also went down. Sun successfully completed its rights issue in February, thereby strengthening its financial structure.

Alteo in the Agro & Property cluster reported improved performance for the financial year mainly due to its Tanzanian sugar operations and property segment. However market conditions remain challenging for the Mauritian sugar industry with a continued depressed sugar price.

Performance of the property development cluster of Alteo is picking up with sales at Anahita Estates Ltd are increasing following the launching of the Amalthea project. Alteo’s group PAT has more than doubled to reach Rs 1.2bn (2014 – Rs 0.6bn). The results include a gain of Rs 305m following the disposal of its 50% shareholding in Anahita Hotel Ltd.

Alteo is pursuing its regional expansion with the acquisition of a 51% stake in Transmara Sugar Company Limited, a Kenyan company, in August 2015.

Ferney Ltd, a 71.06% subsidiary of CIEL, and which owns land assets of more than 3,000 hectares earmarked for future development, disposed of a plot of land at Riche-en-Eau for a net gain of Rs 149m.

Finally, for the year ahead, CIEL will continue to roll out its strategic plans. CIEL is and intends to remain a major economic player in Mauritius whilst pursuing its development on the regional and international fronts. The focus is on sustainable value creation for our stakeholders whilst maintaining a sound financial structure.